Thursday, December 10, 2009

13 Things that are my Driving Pet Peeves

13 Things that are my driving pet peeves!

1. Smokers throwing their cigarette butts out the window. Especially if they are still lit. First of all, it’s littering. Second, I don’t want your ciggie hitting my vehicle. And, THIRD, as an emergency dispatcher, do you know how many times brush/grass fires along the roadway are started from cigarette butts?

2. Texting. Don’t do it. I’m sick of taking calls from other motorists because you are texting and weaving all over the roadway. People think you are drunk.

3. Drinking a beer while driving. Ok, this should be self-explanatory. Tired of those calls, too. And if you are drunk driving? Shame on you.

4. Driving in the left lane. Hello? The left lane is for PASSING. Move over, pass and them move back over. It’s just courtesy. So don’t call up crying about someone tailgating you because you are taking a Sunday drive in the left lane. MOVE OVER!

5. Putting on makeup. Why? Get up earlier. Use your bathroom mirror, not your rearview. How would you like to have an accident and have that mascara wand impaled into your eye? PLUS, we had a local police officer killed when someone wasn’t paying attention because she was applying makeup WHILE DRIVING. Yes, his family has to live without him but she sure looked good when she was booked for vehicular manslaughter.

6. Not using turn signals. Stop texting, talking on your cell or eating and use them. They are not optional equipment. Again, this is just being courteous. Especially when you are about to cut me off, it would be nice to have a little warning. AND nothing like watching two vehicles -- one in the right lane and one in the left both change lanes to the center, NEITHER using their turn signals, Uh, duh.

7. Following your GPS blindly. Don’t call 911 for directions because your GPS is a POS. Buy a map. If it said turn right in the middle of a bridge, would you do it?

8. Having your dog in your lap while driving. Another why? Wait until that airbag deploys and it breaks your dog’s neck. Do you think I’m kidding? I’m not. Put your dog in a crate or a doggy seatbelt. If you want to treat your dog like a kid, then do so, keep them as safe by securing them properly.

9. Parking in the handicapped spot because you are lazy. And don’t have a handicapped placard. Or have a handicapped placard in your vehicle for another family member and you use it even when the person it belongs to is NOT in the vehicle. Shame on you.

10. Using your high beams on a divided highway. Just because there is a concrete barrier between me and you doesn’t mean you aren’t blinding me and all the rest of the oncoming traffic with your lights.

11. Calling in reckless drivers. Please don’t tell us “They are going to kill someone.” We are really numb to that statement now. We hear it constantly. Their chance of them really killing someone is slim to none. We know.

12. Speaking of reckless drivers... If you encounter one, don’t play games with them. Pull over and let them go. And you don’t need to go 90 mph to catch up to them to give us their license plate. That makes you as bad as them. If there is a police officer in the area and they are really reckless, the officer will see it for themselves. But thank you for calling. Have a nice day.

13. Headlights on for safety. Yes, there is a reason that some states have a law to put your headlights on when your wipers are in use. Because sometimes you are HARD TO SEE when it is raining. Or foggy. Or getting dark out. Common sense, people. If you can’t see me without my light on, I can’t see you. And don’t forget that your running lights don’t count, you need your taillights lit, too.

And since we are into the holiday season... will someone please tell me why people feel that they have to decorate their car? Wreaths? Big red nose and antlers? Christmas trees?

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I really hate it when people don't use their turn signals. Because then how am I supposed to know what you're planning to do? I know it's shocking, but your driving behavior and which direction you're planning to turn actually affects other people. Gasp.

Excellent post! I agree with all points, especially the ones about not texting (or phoning!) and not parking in handicap stalls without the proper license plate or mirror tag. I yelled at a pizza delivery person outside our building about this just last week. It doesn't matter whether you're "only going to be" five minutes or an hour, without the proper tags your butt doesn't belong there.

As a pedestrian, I have a long list of other peeves that include stopping at crosswalks as required by state law and staying stopped until they've safely reached the curb. Esp in winter, when one faulty step could put a ped under your car.